Gilmore Girls - Season 2 Episode 18 - Back in the Saddle Again

[00:00:02] This is a Bramble Jam Podcast

[00:00:26] Whoa, whoa, whoa! Hello everybody! Welcome back to Stars Hollow! Welcome back to Gilmore the Merrier! Good to be here. Good to be here. Absolutely. What do we got? What do we got? Four episodes left? Is that right? 22 in the season? We're on 18. Yeah, 19, 20, 21, 22. Yeah, so we got four more after this one. Wow. Okay. Wow. Yeah. We're blazing.

[00:00:49] And the last two have really high user ratings. 8.6, 8.7. Really? Yeah. And then 19 is a high one. But this- You know, when we first- Yeah. Go ahead. When we first started, we were doing two episodes per show. We kept it that pace. We feel like season five. I've been reliving that because I've been uploading it to our new YouTube channel, which you can subscribe to, of course. And I just- Should we re-record? What were we doing? What were we thinking? Well, stick with us. Well, if you made it to this point, everybody, you know we only do one.

[00:01:19] We're actually now moving to a quarter episode per show. 10-minute check-in, as we call it. Yeah. We're going to do one episode every month, and then the other weeks, we'll just talk about that episode some more. It'll be like, oh, it's crazy when that happened, huh? Well, you know, we did miss some episodes because we doubled up, but we do have possibly some bonus episodes coming up where we're going to do more fall flavor tastings, more seasonal coffee tastings, maybe some other stuff. So stay tuned for the bonus episodes as well. It's going to get wild.

[00:01:46] And I think we're getting close to where I start reaching out to some of these season one, season two people for interviews. I think it's time. I think we can talk about enough in season one and season two and hopefully not spoil things for the future. So stay tuned for that. I did see on Instagram, one of the original writers is doing a full rewatch as well. Yes, I've come across that as well. That's a perfect guest to have. Have we talked about the documentary yet? We've not. Well, what's- We tried.

[00:02:13] We did that. Chad, I found out about the documentary and I said, I'm going to create a really fun video where I FaceTime Chad and I tell him the news and all the old things. We filmed it, we record it, and none of the audio is a part of the video. Thanks for leaving me out of that because I'm pissed. Then we did not. We did not do it after. We did not. I was like, I'll do it again tomorrow. And then this is the first time I'm remembering that we did not do it again tomorrow. It was great too because Bran is like, can you FaceTime? I want to tell you something about the show. So he tells me we do this whole thing.

[00:02:40] He didn't know. I had no idea. And it's going really well, I think. And then Bran at the end goes, that didn't work. And I go, okay, bye. And I'm like, did that not work because of my performance or did it not record? And until this moment- Bran just said, that didn't work. And Jon's an actor, man. He takes these notes seriously. I was like, it's not you, it's us. Or we'll let you go. We'll call your agent or whatever. What had happened in this film was right when we were wrapping up, my kids came running in the back door. So I was like, I got to wrap this up really quickly.

[00:03:09] Oh, okay. And then I realized that the audio didn't record. I thought it was like, oh, we're going in another direction. It's not you. You look fine. Is it working? I'm so used to it. I just go, okay, bye. Yeah, it's not working for us, Jon. Okay. All right. Join the club. So fun. We are on episode 18 today, back in the saddle again. Excited to dive into this one. Shall we do it? Let's do it.

[00:03:34] April 23rd, 2002 is when this episode aired on the WB and it went a little something like this. It's Friday night dinner and Richard is late. He's been working hard on a car. She refuses to let them eat until Richard is at the table, much to Lorelai's chagrin.

[00:03:57] The next day, Lorelai is giving Luke a hard time about his new omelet special. Rory says that that's Jess's handwriting. Lorelai says, well, how do you know about the handwriting? And she's like, he's written stuff in the margins of my book, obviously. But we're just friends. It's fine. Dean shows up and crashes their breakfast. And Rory seems kind of annoyed that he's there. Later at work, Brad is back.

[00:04:25] He is here to face his fears. And his fear is Paris. Rory, Paris and co. Are in a group together on this school project where they need to come up with a product and try to launch it for this competition. And they need a parental advisor with business experience to help them with this. Well, they land on maybe we should go with Lorelai. That makes sense. Lorelai is a businesswoman. She can come in and help us.

[00:04:52] Suki gets her wedding invites and they're wrong. She's no Susie. Rory asks Lorelai if she's willing to be the group advisor. And she's like, well, how about you ask your grandfather? I bet he'd love to be your advisor. He's doing literally nothing right now. So she goes to ask him and he is not sure if he'd be much help. And he's like, listen, things are a little hectic right now with the car. And it's short notice.

[00:05:21] So sorry, can't do it. But when Emily hears about this, she's like, you're going to help. Okay. So obviously he's going to help. Michelle's mom is in town. It's a lot. Richard shows up to hear the students pitches on their made up invention that they want to create. And Paris pitches her idea, which is basically tricked out first aid kits. Get first aid kits, but they're fancy and got cool designs and stuff. Richard pressures her on this.

[00:05:51] Make sure it's really something that she's passionate about. She doesn't back down because she's Paris Geller. And Richard loves it. We're going with it. But she gets home and has a billion messages from Dean. It's fine, though, Dean. Don't worry. Lorelai, it seems like something's bothering this boy. And she's like, yeah, I don't know what his deal is. You know, like I talk to him and I respond to his pages eventually. I don't understand what the problem is.

[00:06:21] Richard has all the kids over to his house because he's very excited about this. And they need a good, nice place to be able to work. He is absolutely eating this project up. Got to be honest, he might be more passionate about this project than the kids are. Might be. Dean comes over to wash Rory's car without asking if that's something that she would want. Lorelai comes down and is like, hey, bud. Hey, bud. Hey, buddy. Get off the shed. Maybe just tone it down a bit.

[00:06:50] You're not losing Rory, but if you keep this up, you will. And clean my car while you're out. Yeah, you can clean my car. Michelle gets mad at Lorelai for telling his mom that he doesn't eat carbs. Oops. It's time to find out who the winner of the project was. And Rory's team doesn't win. And Richard can't believe it.

[00:07:15] He goes to talk to Headmaster Charleston and gives him a piece of his mind and demands a recount. Headmaster Charleston is like, okay, I just recounted and you still lose. Yes, your project was in the running, but it was not the best. Richard is like, it's not about the project. It's about them. It's their project. It's not my project. Headmaster Charleston is like, well, you're the one causing the scene. So maybe it is your project. And he hears this and he storms out.

[00:07:45] Unfortunately for them, though, it's Friday night dinner. And when they get there, it's clear that Emily has had it up to here with Richard. She says Richard came home huffing and puffing and went into his study and have not come out since. Well, he ends up coming out and seems very happy. And he says he has news. He doesn't want to retire. He wants to do something. He's inspired. The Gilmore girls head back to Stars Hollow.

[00:08:14] Although Rory asked to be dropped off in town. She's going to call Dean later. It'll be fine. But when Lorelai gets home, Dean is there sitting on the stoop. And he says to Lorelai, she's in love with Jess, isn't she? And Lorelai just kind of stares at him. Not sure how to respond to that one. And that was Gilmore girls season two, episode 18. Back in the saddle again. Did it.

[00:08:45] Oh, my. Let's take a break. Let's take a break. We'll come back. We'll break this episode down here on Deck The Hallmark. That was a lot. Welcome back, everybody. Brent, I was just thinking, Chad, if you remember all the way back to when we did episode 17, like a week ago, right? Chad mentioned Jess riding in the margins. Yeah, I didn't know what he meant. And I didn't either.

[00:09:11] But it turns out like just a great prognosticator because that happened in episode 18. Chad, do you remember that when you said that last episode? Were you just is that just how you define intimacy is margin writing? Like, how do you? Yes, that's how I that's how I asked my wife to marry me. Actually. Would you do me a favor? I write in your margins. And you write in mine. Yeah, that's the most intimate thing. Did you wait to write in the margins until marriage? I would only wait until marriage, man. What kind of guy do you think I am?

[00:09:41] Let's share our thoughts on how what we thought about this episode. We're going to start with a hot take. We're going to start with the hottest taker. Gentleman never tells what he writes in margins. That's right. That was too much. I'm sorry. Come on, man. It's a family show. We're going to start with the hottest taker. We're going to start with the hottest taker, both in his hot takes and in his appearance. Chad, what did you think of this episode? I really enjoyed this episode.

[00:10:09] Or is my note to say, I really emptied this episode, which is fantastic. I'm reading my full notes. You got places, brother. Yes, I did. I'm reading what's in the margin, not my actual notes. You know how I am, dirty dog. So there were a few lines going on that were just okay. Right. Michelle and his mom, Giselle. Okay. It was fine. A throwaway storyline. A throwaway story. School project. Enjoyed it. But here's the crux of the episode that was so important. Oh my gosh.

[00:10:40] I see Rory and Dean. I started to feel really badly for Dean. Poor Dean. I mean, they make sure that you know that good guys finish last. That's right. Because that's the moral here. Where Rory clearly has lost interest. And we all start to see it. And so do the characters. I don't know if she fully realizes yet or admits it to herself yet. But everyone, little by little, is realizing this. So whereas five episodes ago, Dean showing up and washing her car. Or calling and saying, I'm going to stop by.

[00:11:10] Was like, this is really great. That would have made him a great boyfriend. All of a sudden, it's coming off as clingy and desperate. But Dean hasn't changed. Rory changed. And little by little, we watch his heart break. And we have to come to grips with it as he does. And boy, is it brutal. That's what happens when someone writes in your margins. It changes. It changes. It changes. You never forget. Yeah, that's amazing. So there's a lot of other stuff going on. But that's the main focus.

[00:11:35] Because I felt like that had the most ramification for the future of the show right there. Wow. What an episode. What an episode of television. I really like this episode. I really like Richard. When Richard has episodes like this where Richard just gets over eager about something. And then takes everything really personally.

[00:11:59] And it's just his conversation with Headmaster Charleston, where he can't see that he clearly cares about this project more than the kids do, was very funny to me. And also, I've got to be honest with you, I kind of like those first aid kits. Pretty good idea. But, yeah, the whole episode is just slowly showing you that she is completely over. That's right. Like, completely over.

[00:12:26] And the way that this episode ends, where he's sitting there and he just says, she's in love with Jess, isn't he? Brutal. Brutal. And so another one of those moments where you're like, you see him sitting on the stairs and you're like, oh. Oh, it's similar to the phone call from a couple weeks ago where you're just like, you know what's about to happen. You know that he's kind of put it together. And, oh, just brutal. And they do this.

[00:12:56] Think about watching in real time because they do this in the last 30 seconds of the show. I know. And they just leave you hanging for the week. It's wild. Wild. They leave you in margins for the week. Absolutely. I really like this episode. I think it's a lot of fun and also heartbreaking and also just like really just makes you super nervous and stressed out. And I'm really I just made me want to go on and watch episode 19. And so we're clicking, folks. We're clicking. And did that happen? Did that ever happen?

[00:13:24] Either of you guys when you were younger in high school where you really loved this girl or guy, whatever. And all of a sudden just day change. You know, yeah, go ahead. Fine. Yeah. I don't know. When I get there, we all share a bed, whatever. I don't care. Yeah, it's fine. Yeah. We do share straws. That is true. It's true. That's right. But has that happened? Either of you? What Dean is feeling? No, I never had a girl like me enough to lead me along like that. So no. No, it didn't.

[00:13:54] It didn't is the short version. I was usually I'm not going to. I was using the other end of that. I see. I call him Icy Dan. I'm sorry. I could have said nothing there. No, it's fine. I could have said nothing. It's good. Are you saying you're right in the margins and leave them type of guy? Is that what you're saying? That's maybe a little bit strong. Oh, no.

[00:14:19] Did you ever have this happen where somebody just slowly pulled away from you that you thought you were really into? I can't. No. I can't even fathom this. No, I know it hasn't happened. Have you seen this guy? He's the hottest Gilmore girl. The hottest Gilmore girl. No, it hasn't. But it is fascinating to watch in real time. Yeah. Oh, gosh. All right, Dan. What did you think? Yeah, I wasn't as high on this episode as you guys. It's okay. I think the best episodes take place in Stars Hollow and feature Suki and Paris somehow.

[00:14:49] I think that is what I've cornered on. It's a good Paris, though. What we do. So we get that. And I, you know, a lot of the Richard Herman. What's his? Why can't I think it was Richard? Yeah, Richard. A lot of the Richard stuff. He's such a, Ed Herman is such a good actor that he makes that stuff sing. It's not really my thing, and I didn't really like it, and I was just like, meh. The Michelle mom thing, plotline, was an absolute throwaway, aside from the fact that Janet Hubert is his mom.

[00:15:19] Do you know who that is? No. Yes. That is the original Aunt Viv from Fresh Prince before she was replaced. Yes. Oh, right, right. So that was fun. And then the Dean stuff is effective. It is effective. It's incredibly heartbreaking. You know, one good way to figure out if someone has an affinity for you is if they find a way to be around you.

[00:15:42] And when they do the reverse, when they find a way to not be around you, that is an absolute gut punch. And that is what's happening to Dean in real time. By the time he sees the giant eight-car pileup crash, like everything's rubble. You know what I mean? Like he's just the last to know, and it is very effective. Like even watching Rory. I mean, Rory might be the last to know. Well, I don't know. I think she might not be willing to admit it.

[00:16:11] But even her going, like, he hasn't called me in two days. And it's so exciting for her. It's so exciting that she hasn't been called in two days, but also is looking for reasons to hang out with Jess. Like Dean is the one that doesn't know. Like Dean is so late to the party. It's ended and they're in the middle of the obituary. And he is just now finding out about it. And you have to laugh so you don't cry. Poor Dean.

[00:16:40] But also he's not a bright boy. Like he's just a bright, like, buddy. Like do a little bit of detective work here. You know, and Lorelei messes up by saying the best, like, stop calling her 14 times. Absolutely. But I think Lorelei might be the second latest to the party because she thinks if you don't call her for two days, Rory's going to be like, I wonder what Dean's up to. But instead, Rory's like, he hasn't called me in two days. Up top. How exciting.

[00:17:10] It's tough because clearly Emily does not like Jess. And also I think is like, she doesn't want to think that her daughter would do this. Like leave this good thing for the new thing. Like I think. And also she does. Yeah, exactly. I think he, she wants her daughter to make her own choices, but not this one. Right. If I could. And so it's like a cut. She's lying to her.

[00:17:39] Knowing that she's going to end up with Jess, at least for a time. Right. At least for a time. I would love to ask you. I mean, I, if you don't want to answer, you don't have to, but I would love to ask you if she ever finds out. But he kept that bracelet from her for days and then hit it back in her room. I would love to know that information because I'm going to, this show is going to lose a little bit for me if they don't address it. So there's that. Save it for the rest. All right. I'll save it. I'll save it.

[00:18:07] This episode is not my favorite. Still well-written. Still entertaining. I would have it near the bottom of the barrel. This isn't one that I'm going to love. Oh, wow. The Dean stuff is very effective. The rest of this, I think our time is spent better places. I don't need to see Richard realizing he still loves business on the backs of a bunch of children. I don't have it. Like that isn't, I'm glad it worked for others. I was so uninterested in this. Aside from the fact that Paris gets some real great zingers, some real great zingers with, is it Chad? Brad.

[00:18:37] Brad. Oh my goodness. That's Chad. That's Chad. Brad. Thank you. That's great. But the rest of this, none of that really worked for me. I think it worked for you guys. Okay. Dan, let me ask you, because I know you don't like Emily and Richard. Between the two, I feel like you like Emily less than Richard. Is that correct? Yeah. I think they both have utilized their power and privilege and where they stand to be the worst possible parents and humans possible. But what do you think about him as a, don't hold back.

[00:19:07] What do you think about him as a grandfather though? I know you don't like him as a father, but as a grandfather. I think if they were consistent with Richard being around and doing this stuff with Rory, I would have come around on him a long time ago. But they're not. It's like, come to the country club and then disappear for 10, 12, 15 episodes. And so he's almost worse.

[00:19:30] Like, I guess you can make an argument that Emily in her own way is refusing to not be involved in her daughter's life. That's not an argument I would agree with, but you could make it. You can't make that argument with Richard. He literally isn't around unless you just beg him to be around. Interesting. Yeah. Yeah. Okay. But I still, Emily has done more harm to her daughter, I think, than Richard. I don't, I think they both, I both, this show's better without both of them. And I'll stand by that.

[00:20:01] She's done more active harm. Correct. There's, there's the passive. The passive harm is. 100% not being active in her life. You could argue is worse. But there is so much warmth. When Rory walks in, when both grandparents see her, there is so much warmth between the three of them that I see that. And, and you can see that they wanted, you know, they want to correct their mistakes. Yeah. I think it's correct. I've thought about this a lot. I know that, that I really have. And there's such a warmth.

[00:20:26] Like my parents were pretty strict on me and they were, but they were, but they were like, they were like very loving about it, but didn't let me watch a lot. Didn't let me like do a lot of stuff. And that's just, that's who they were. And you know what? Most of the time I look back and I'm like, that was probably the safe bet. They let my kids do whatever they want.

[00:20:46] And it's so fun to me to revel in the difference, the different, but the difference in that situation and Lorelei, Rory and Emily and Richard is my parents strictness wasn't irrevocable damage and trauma and conditional love. My parents strictness was a product of their raise and what they thought was best for me. And their love was unconditional. Even if their strictness was not something that, that I appreciated, I can at least see it.

[00:21:16] Right. Whereas in this case, this is conditional love and that's really damaging. And so it's hard for me to see the warmth to Rory because I know that they're still passing down some of this generationally by you allowing them to be in their life. And I've thought about this a lot and I'll continue to, but so that's fair. I do think, uh, like Dan, you, uh, your parents had rules and by and large you followed rules. I did. Yes. So who, I don't, I don't believe that your parents would have ever been like, get out and don't come back.

[00:21:45] No, if I had gotten, if I had gotten a girl pregnant, they would not have been. If you were getting people pregnant. And got someone pregnant. Right. Right. Or watching the R rated movies. Yeah. Whatever. You know, like I wasn't allowed to be anywhere near Scooby Doo. Sure. You know, and I, uh, went to my, I went Scooby Doo. It was more like a Scooby Tone. Scooby Done situation for me. Yeah. Uh, couldn't do Scooby Doo. Couldn't do He-Man. Couldn't do Ninja Turtles. Couldn't do Simpsons. Couldn't do any of that.

[00:22:13] And, uh, I walked into my parents' house to pick up my children who were there and they had gone to the library and rented a Scooby Doo DVD. Oh, wow. Like there's like all of these mummies coming to life and they're walking around. And scaring the bejesus out of children. And my parents are just, my dad's over there. My Southern Baptist pastor dad is just the bad, like my absolute hero being like, oh, look out. Like he's just enjoying it. Nettling kids. That's right.

[00:22:42] It is like, and I, it makes me so happy. I don't, I'm not like, you didn't do this for me. It makes me so happy to be like, to, they probably thought they had to say no. They probably thought as part of what they needed to do as parents of that era from a certain religion, it was their job to say no. And the fact that they get to say yes now and get to see the joy on my kids' faces, like that brings me joy. So like, I'm not like, we're, we're hopefully continuing a good cycle of love and unconditional love and parenting in my house.

[00:23:12] Not trying to break bad ones. Um, this is just the reverse to me. It just is. Great time for us to plug our new podcast where we do a rewatch of Scooby Doo. Oh yeah. Scooby Doo or Scooby Don't. That's right. The name's there. It's right there. We clearly worked on it. Uh, all the fields, uh, any lines that stuck out to us or moments that we'll allow it. Chad? Well, obviously we went into it. It's the biggest one. It's just brutal. And I had to bring it up one more time because that's the fields.

[00:23:42] Rory is so icy. She's like, of course you could sit at our table or yeah, I'll call Dean tomorrow. And then just like the next on the porch scene, just brutal, icy fields. We've gone through it. There were a couple of futuristic fields, which was interesting. They had two product, uh, ideas. Um, the two, uh, what are their names? Shelby and Lori or Louise rather. Um, one says a lipstick low Jack, which is now an air tag, which came through air tag, real thing.

[00:24:09] One says a little device that can fit in your pocket or your locker that can tell you facts and everything. And you can take with you, which is the iPhone. So smartphones in general. Right. So I was like, wow, these are two devices. They actually, they founded Apple. Steve Jobs was watching these. I think so. Uh, and then I had a funny line. Michelle says to Lorelai, you know what happens when you assume, don't you? And, uh, Lorelai said, I'm French.

[00:24:39] I could do it. I heard your Australian accents guys. The silence spoke volumes there from us. We're like, what is Chad doing? Yeah. I love a good French accent. And, uh, Lorelai says, no, Michelle says, uh, I don't know something about the donkey. It is a stupid American phrase. And, uh, it was just so funny because we're all thinking we know what the phrase is and he doesn't even know. And he goes with it. And yeah, it's a great French accent that I do. Yeah, absolutely. It's a great French accent that he does. It's so good. Yeah.

[00:25:07] Um, yeah, I love, uh, I think it's Louise. I never know their two names and which one is which, but Louise is the blonde, I believe. And, uh, what Shelby's the brunette. I think they're supposed to be reading through, uh, something. And, uh, I think it's Paris is like, what did you all think? And she goes, oh, we were supposed to be reading. I thought we were like praying or something. And I thought that was really funny. I don't know how those two girls who do seem like they have good ideas, but don't have any

[00:25:37] interest in school continue to get by at Chilton, but I'm happy they do because they continue to say things that make me laugh. So it works. Uh, Dano. Yeah. Anytime Paris has a thing she says back to Brad after he says anything is just a highlight of my existence. Like after these zingers you're bringing us, Brad, like they don't help at all. So great. She also says chess boards for the Bobby Fisher freaks. I love that line and delivery.

[00:26:02] Shout out to the 1993 film, uh, with Ben Kingsley, uh, searching for Bobby Fisher, a great movie if you've never seen it. Um, and then also while Richard's entire art doesn't do anything for me at all, Ed Herman's reactions to these kids delivering their pitches and how bad they are fan. Like when they're like, it's going to be a lipstick low jack. And he's back there. Like, like, you know, it's so funny. Really, really funny. So that did work for me. Uh, all right, let's take a break. We'll come back. We'll get to the way. What?

[00:26:32] And the written in the stars hollow here on. Gilmore the Marriott. La la la la la. Welcome back, everybody. We're talking about Gilmore Girls season two, episode 18 today. Let's get to the way. So we're talking about what in this episode made us go. What? I'll start with you, Chad. Uh, Michelle wants to avoid his mother. So he says he took a six hour bath. Wait, what? What? How do you keep it warm? How do you have that swath of time?

[00:27:00] I mean, that just, that actually made me say, well, it sounds delightful. I just don't know how you keep it warm that whole time. How do you keep a lot of warm is a great question that I've not really. Yeah. Yeah. I'm going to, we're going to have to try that next time I'm down. Six hour bath. And we'll just time it when it gets cold. Yeah. Okay. We'll do that. Dean. Wait, what? You left 14 messages. Dean. Dean, buddy. Dean, buddy. Yeah. And that doesn't mean he didn't call more. He just left 14 messages.

[00:27:27] I am extrapolating from that, that he probably called twice as much and left messages half the time. There's 28 calls that afternoon. Well, I mean, that's generous. I will say, uh, what would have happened for me if I was in the situation where I kept hearing someone leaving messages, I would help them help me. And I would do what we did back in the day when my parents wanted to take a nap on Sunday afternoon. We would take that phone off the hook. We would turn it on.

[00:27:56] I forgot about taking it off. And we would put it under a pillow. So you couldn't hear the dial tone for the thing. And then we would just let it run. Good luck calling us now, sucker. You can't. Lines jam. Sunday afternoon, take that phone off the hook. Dude, that was a classic Thompson move. We take the phone off the hook. Old fashioned, do not disturb. That's exactly right. And also the fact that my way what was, how did Lorelai not do this? How did Lorelai not take the phone off the hook? That many messages. She was sitting in the living room just listening to the phone ring. I would have lost my mind.

[00:28:26] Well, maybe because Rory is not home and in case there's an emergency, she needs to be there. She needs to leave it on. So she had to suffer through the messages. I guess. But she'd be picking it up every time. I don't know, man. Yeah. I hear you. That's a good one. Stop. Stop, Dean. Don't call here again. Anything else? No, that was it. I mean, there were plenty, but that was enough. Yeah. Richard's a car guy. He is. So we know that. Richard, what? He did. When Dean makes the car, he does a full bit.

[00:28:55] He does. He takes it to a mechanic, but he likes to talk about that. And then I feel like he talks about cars in one other episode. I just was like, what is this guy? Maybe it's just a thing. Like, he just, he strikes me as somebody who would not spend the time to learn those things. That it's frivolous. That makes sense. It's beneath me. I will take it to somebody to look at it and to do the things, but I'm not going to get my hands dirty. He just does not strike me as a get my hands dirty type of guy.

[00:29:25] I guess he's starting in his retirement because it's a hobby. Right. Did you notice what type of car it was? As I looked it up is a 1929 Packer Deluxe, which goes anywhere, depending on the condition from 60,000 to 460,000. Whoa. That's a nice car. Good for him. That's a new car smell right there. What a thing. Also, does Dean just like have the whole week off? Oh my God. Between all the phone calls, I'm coming over to wash your car. Is he not working this week? What is he doing?

[00:29:54] Not in school. No ambition. Works his grocery store job and calls his girlfriend 14 times without an answer. I wonder why she doesn't want to date you. I thought his hours were reduced because the produce guy from the last episode had so much into juice. I mean, as someone that was team Dean and really championed this guy, how the mighty have fallen. Yeah. That's a great answer. Perhaps the Taylor's market. Taylor was like, I can't afford to pay you.

[00:30:22] Taylor's market has not yet recovered from the farmer's market situation from last week. So less hours for Dean to work, more times for him to worry and just let his mind run. That would explain that. I mean, just don't write it. Yeah, go on. I'm sorry. Well, I'm just saying without that, like he does, like he goes to school and then he goes to work. They usually like aren't able to hang out until the weekend. Like what was, what was he doing this week? What was going on? I know.

[00:30:50] Jesse started writing in the margins and Dean got marginalized. They got marginalized. Nicely. Nicely. Big week for margins. Good stuff. Dana? Yeah. I'm glad you love the plot line with Richard. This is a old man calling high school students to come to his, telling them to come to his house. That's what's happening here. I like, I know it was a different time. This is an old man with no clearance whatsoever, picking up a landline and calling high school

[00:31:19] children and telling them to come to his house because he has better snacks. That did strike me as odd too. I thought that. Yeah. In what decade is that normal? In his defense, he did call Rory first and say, do you think it's a good idea? And then Paris gets there before everybody else does. But we do know Paris loves snacks. Paris loves snacks. If Paris knows that there's going to be food there that she's not usually allowed to eat, she will be there.

[00:31:46] When an old man starts calling your high school friends to invite them over because he has better snacks, this is the best case scenario of what's going to happen. We'll trade in that white packer for a white van. Yeah, exactly. I just couldn't. I immediately was like, somebody is getting like, he's going to jail. Maybe not for his actions because one of these parents is going to be like, how's your day? Oh, cool. Awesome. I'm sorry. What? You did what with your day? Where? Who?

[00:32:16] Whose grandfather? Well, thankfully the children parents aren't involved in the kids' lives. Yeah. I just, I thought for sure. They're all in jail. This is 1962. It's 2002. Like, it's not like it's like, this is crazy. The old guy is just, he called me, just cold called me and said, come into my house. The snacks are better. Yeah. They'll love it. The snacks are better?

[00:32:37] And then lastly, cut to me squirming uncontrollably as Dean leaves a car covered in soap to walk inside. Yeah. The hose is right there and on. Right. Just give it a quick rinse off. You can't do this. You can't leave soap suds all over a painted car.

[00:33:06] You can't do it. That's a great point. Why didn't you just finish? Hose it off. I just, I worked at a car lot in high school, Taylor Auto Sales, Lyman, South Carolina. Shout out. Jerry Taylor, church member. From a small town. And he would, yeah, would hire me under the table cash. Don't want to get Jerry in trouble. God rest his soul. Vendetta decade. He would have, and my job was to take all the cars, to put gas in it, take them for maintenance, switch the parking lot scheme so that cars would be in different spaces so people could see them.

[00:33:36] And also give the cars a wash if they've been sitting out for a while. And I would get, they would come out and be like, look at this soap streak on this. Like, that's how I learned to wash cars. And the idea that the soap sits there already is making my, like, my kids are like, always like, now I want to wash my car. And I'm like, trying to grin and be like, yeah, but also I can't leave you unattended. You know you have to wash it after. That's right.

[00:34:02] And so the idea that Dean is washing Rory's car, it's covered in soap suds. And Laura was like, put the hose down. Come on inside. And I'm just like, guys, could we? Dean would know better. He would know, but he's made it. He built a car. Right, right. You can't do this. That's passive aggressive. It's his way to get back in. He would just be like, he would be like, even if he'd be at Ms. Gilmore, if I could just, just give me 30 seconds to give a quick run around, top down.

[00:34:32] You gotta, you gotta. And what happened when Rory came home and saw it like that? Like, geez, who hates me? Maybe that's why she doesn't like Dean anymore. That would finally make sense. But no, later he's back at the house again. They just don't mention him again. That was tough. Those are my two. Let's get to the written and the stars hollow questions we have. All that good stuff. Chad? Okay. I have some questions here. So now that we know that Dean knows that Rory likes Jess, what does he do about it going forward? Does he confront Rory? Don't answer. He's not also a bitch.

[00:35:02] Right. Does he jump on? Does he bubble up in the car? At the end of the episode, Jiminy Christmas. Yeah. Does he confront Jess? Does he become even more possessive and try to hold on to her? Does he listen to Lorelei and back off? I hope not. I hope not. There's so many questions with that, though. He doubles down on getting angry at Jess. That's what I was going to say. Do you guys think there's one more? Is there going to be one more fist fight between these two? I think it's leading to a major confrontation. It's happened before. It's got to. He's got to fight for it. Do you think so? I don't think there's a fist fight.

[00:35:31] I think Dean knows he's beaten. I just really... This is going to end up being a real... I know already. I just like the setup of Tristan and Dean so much more than Jess and Dean. I just do. Them kissing in a moment where they're both in an emotional state and vulnerable and realizing they both are tied to other people is a much better conceit of a thing that Rory has to hide and has to feel conflicted about

[00:36:01] and knows she has attraction to Tristan, but Dean is there and he's her boyfriend. This current one, Jess is still an absolute SOB. He went full Buffalo Bill and kept an article, an accessory of hers for a week only to sneak back in and hide it. And I hate it. She doesn't know it. She doesn't know that information. And without that, I don't think she can make an informed opinion on the character of Jess.

[00:36:28] And so my written in the Stars Hollow to skip you entirely because you did ask is, do we ever get that conversation? Because I am starting to like Jess as a character. I do think he's coming along. I do think he's a great match for Rory intellectually and their interests are alike. But the setup of the triangle of Tristan, Dean, and Rory

[00:36:55] is much more character entertaining to me where everyone has the information I believe they should have in order to make that fun. Whereas this is not that yet. I want you guys to respond to this comment about Jess taking the bracelet. Okay. Where is the comment from? Instagram. All right. I didn't read it then. Yeah. He kept it to have a piece of her since she was still with Dean

[00:37:24] and potentially as a trump card for a reason to see slash speak to her. Once he saw how much trouble with Dean she thought that she'd be in, how much it quote unquote mattered to her despite it taking two weeks to be noticed, he tried to give it back as stealthily as possible. He did not keep it to hurt her. By breaking and entering. He did not take it to hurt her. Misguided and not ill-intentioned.

[00:37:54] Desperate attempt for connection. All right. Chad, what do you think about that comment? I wholeheartedly disagree. He's not emotionally mature. He's not that well thought out with something like that. He took it. He might not have known what he was going to do with it later, but he knew it gave him power and a connection with Rory of a sense. Not a whole piece of art, but a connection to get back to have some kind of control over Dean or what was going on. It was malintended, not good intention. Yeah, that is the craziest take.

[00:38:23] That take had to come from Jess's mother, right? Like that is a take I've never, like, I will say this. During the episode, we talked about how if he takes that bracelet and then the next day goes, Hey, did you leave this bracelet as a chance to have another date with her? Game recognized game. I have no issue with that. That comment has 22 likes. Wow. So if he does that, right? Would you agree with me, Brian? If he takes the bracelet, she leaves it, he takes it.

[00:38:50] And the next day, immediately text or calls her and goes, Hey, did you leave this bracelet? I found it. In order to score a second date, then I do. I'm like, okay, I get it. This is what the premise of this is a serial killer premise. He kept it to have a piece of art. Dexter Morgan collects slides of blood, guys. Keeping something to have a piece of someone that is not your property

[00:39:15] or your significant other, that is not an excuse in the favor of that being a good guy. No, it's giving hello, Clarice. That's exactly right. Just this guy? Yes. This one I think you guys will agree with. He wanted to see how long it would take for her to notice that it was gone as a means of addressing her feelings for Dean. That I can buy. Let me hold on to this and see how long it takes.

[00:39:45] It's not a good thing. Yeah, I was about to say. No, no, no. Still an absolute monster move to go, let me see how this plays out in their relationship. I think he took it and said, I'll figure something out later. But I don't think he knew it was Dean gave it to her when he took it. I think he just took it to keep it. Right? Or did he know, Dean? I'm not sure. I felt like he knew because he knew it had some kind of value. I think it's bad either way. For sure. I love that people are interacting with our Instagram at GilmoreTheMarrierPod. Keep it up. Yeah. And give us some likes. Tell us how we're wrong.

[00:40:14] But I'm just telling you right now. We're writing. Serial killer stuff. That's right. And shout out to Heather who's doing a great job with our reels. Oh my gosh. She's crushing it. Thank you. She is. I want to, for my written in the stars, although I want to ask you guys a question really quickly. Okay. Uh, it does seem like Richard is going back to work. Yeah. As an entrepreneur, right? He's going to own his own business. That's what I'm going to ask you guys. What do you think is next for Richard? A guy who has been in the insurance game his entire life. I think he's going to own his own business. Whatever that is. I don't think he's going to go back. That's what I'm asking.

[00:40:44] What is, what is it? Oh. I think he's going to be a business consultant for various insurance agencies throughout the Hartford, Connecticut area. That would make sense. I think, uh, I have a dear friend that was my, it's actually my dad's, one of my dad's best friends who is now used to be a CPA. And now he is a fractional C CFO for nonprofits. So he literally in, in South Carolina and in New York, he lived in New York for a long, long time. He flies up there. Like, I don't know, at least one week a month.

[00:41:14] And he's a, he just meets with all these different businesses and he gives them two, three hours of his time and to make sure that they're, they're on track with their books. I, something like that, but not finances. So he might make snacks for kids. That might be a thing. And he calls them up and he invites them all these underage children. We, the snacks are best here. You're going to love it. He only sells them out of this house. I'll send a van to come get you. They're fresher. There's a lot of puppies that you can pet here. It's going to be awesome.

[00:41:44] There aren't any razor blades in these snacks. I promise. By the way, I do, I do have a, just really fast. I know we kind of moved on, but I do have two quick questions here. I love speaking of Richard. I loved Paris and Richard's interaction. I thought it was great for all of my complaint with how that happened. Paris and Richard together. That's as good a pairing as you can get for Richard. Paris has never found a bad scene partner. No. It's true. Right. I just, I hope we get more of that. One of my notes says, did, does Dean go? So I don't know what that is.

[00:42:14] I just wanted to read it. Did this Dean go? I've been saying that. Yeah. Yeah. That's a good question. And, and what about one last thing we can't say, but I just had to bring it up. I always hear this. And when the heck are we going to meet this guy? Logan. I hear this name all the time, but we have not met him yet. Is this a season three thing? It's got to be written in the stars. Hollow. We'll find out. All right. All right. We did it. Everybody. Congratulations to us. Come on back next week for another episode. Episode 19. Approaching the end. Approaching the end.

[00:42:43] Until then, keep Gilmore and be merry. Deck The Hallmark Bramble Jam podcast produced by Brandon Gray and yeah, that Greenville, South Carolina. For more information on the show, please follow us on the Instagram at Gilmore the Merrier pod. And to get this episode ad free and join in on the live video chats, bramblejamplus.com. Awesome. Sorry, I got.

[00:43:14] You're about to hear some ads that help keep the lights on here in the old studio. Thanks for listening or don't listen. It's really up to you at this point. It's at the end of the show. I mean, you're listening to me. Hi. But here they come. I promise they're coming. Yep. Here they are. Happy day.